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Post by gaffo on Apr 1, 2006 2:13:11 GMT -5
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Post by Admin on Apr 1, 2006 12:45:18 GMT -5
Here is the scoop on no name cheapies. 99% of them come with cheapo lousy tires, cheap belts, fuel lines and all rubber, lousy batteries, etc. You don't end up saving anything after you have to replace all that stuff. Spend a couple hundred more and you'll have a lot less aggravation. Just my $.02.
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Post by medman1952 on Apr 1, 2006 12:49:43 GMT -5
I honestly have no idea as to the quality, but you found a very nice looking Vespa clone. I found another at this web page for about 20 bucks less and it is a 150cc instead of a 125cc. I'm not making a statement about this ones quality either, just tossing out an option. There is a lot of competition out there for your money, it sometimes pays to shop. dfwscooters.com/product_info.php?products_id=479&osCsid=73bc46a9de4c68c5229099af5c628843 |
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Post by gaffo on Apr 1, 2006 13:37:52 GMT -5
Yep - that is the Roketa Sicily - scootertronics has it for 1800.
DWF has that cheap Tank motorcycle I've been eyeing a few months now.
- Thanks for reminding me of DWF!!!......shippingis usually 150 buck from them, but this item is FREE to HOME!! (no Metalic Green ;-(.................).
But a better deal - and from a tad bit more name-brand (being chniese that ain't saying alot ;-/.
I think you just found a nice Scooter for me medman!! (THANKS!!).
;-).
----
thank you Lee for such a usefull resource here! - that other scooterBBS can be so "elitist"......I know you know what I mean ;-/.
byebye!
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Post by Admin on Apr 1, 2006 15:11:32 GMT -5
I'll be honest. I think Roketa is probably one of the better Chinese scoots but you might still need to upgrade some of the rubber. That's a pretty darn good price.
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Post by medman1952 on Apr 3, 2006 0:01:12 GMT -5
Certainly they do cut corners with the Chicom Cycles, like the hose clamps are all those little spring clamps that over time actually can cut through the hose. I figure that it wouldn't take me much more than ten bucks, if that and maybe twenty minutes to replace hoses on my little scooter. Tires, ok, I have not bought any scooter tires but shouldn't they be about $50.00 to $80.00 for a pair? As for the rest of it, is the quality that much different between them? Belts, I don't know much about those but I have been looking and think I found them for about $65.00
Enlighten me please.
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Post by Javarod on Apr 3, 2006 7:39:50 GMT -5
Hmmm, what bothers me about this is that they don't name names. With how many different brands this scooter can be found with a variety of engines, it makes me suspicious that it might be a crap shoot as to whether you get a Roketa or another label soley based on where they get the best price for this container lot. Is there a Roketa dealer in your area? Give them a shot, also hunt Craigs List and eBay for scooters, primarily used, there are some good buys out there, I've a rebuildable 03 Yamaha Vino (50cc 2T) for $665 that I should have ready to go for no more than another $300. |
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Post by scooterollie on Apr 3, 2006 8:57:56 GMT -5
I have a Roketa 150 (Phantom clone) and have found it to be of decent quality. Mine came with 13" low profile Kenda brand tires - an acceptable quality Tiwan manufacturer - and a Yuasa brand AGM maintenance-free battery. The name "Roketa" is not the Chinese manufacturer's brand name but the brand name devised by the importer. The manufacturer of at least some of these bikes branded as Roketa is Chuanl(ing) Motorcycle manufacturing Co. (http://www.longboamerica.com/). The local dealer I purchased my bike from bought his first shipment last year from "Roketa", the importer. After attending the Dealer Expo, he signed on directly with Chuanl. I have seen a couple of the 2006 50cc "Longbo" Chuanl bikes he just got in and found them to be improved over the '05 versions. With only 250 miles on my bike since January, I cannot give a definitive report on long-term durability but it has run well for those miles. I replaced the fuel filter with a better quality, higher flow one, and the spark plug with an NGK brand - both as per recommendations found on scoot boards. A 150 B&W KYMCO would cost more than double what I paid. I do admire the quality and durability found on the big$ bikes and perhaps will have one some day but as a casual, short-trip rider, I cannot justify the additional expense at this time.
ScooterOllie
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Post by Admin on Apr 3, 2006 15:53:41 GMT -5
The fact that you have a Yuasa batterie and decent tires tells us somthing about Roketa. And, they have taken the time to build a decent website.
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Post by Javarod on Apr 3, 2006 17:53:35 GMT -5
Nods, "Don't get me wrong, I'm very for Roketa, a Cayman is very likely to be my next scoot. I like the size, and the price is much better than KYMCo. Speaking of KYMCo, I've a Vitality, a 50cc 2T scoot, and when I came here I also had a Tank Urban 50. I'd say that while the Urban's plastic didn't look up to the standards of the KYMCo, the thing rattled less over bumps and felt equally as solid. With my delaer rating Roketas to be equal in quality to Tanks, and having seen that the plastics are actually better than Tank, someone'd really have to get me to work to pick up another KYMCo. My issue here is that I don't recall anything in the ad saying Roketa, only the model number and name of the scoot that Roketa uses, and anyone could copy that from their website and slap it on an ad for an inferior product."
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Post by gaffo on Apr 3, 2006 21:24:30 GMT -5
thank so much scooterrallie for relaying your experiences and knowledge about Roketa scooters! You are alot of help - and I'm going to go over DFW's site and read over and read read over their policy. To be as informed as possible. DFW is at least one pissed off customer who revieved his scooter UPSIDE-DOWN and busted up (a post I ran across a few weeks ago). If I end up giving htem my business - I will NOT sign a damn thing for the delivery guy until I have the box opened at verify the item is not broken........the delivery guy can wait 10 minutes on my porch if need be. Javarod - you have a good point!! If I e-mail and get them to verify that it is a Roketa in writting - I assume that would not be a lie? (maybe). I see that the name and model numbers are identical. I would think that if this scooter is NOT a real Roketa, that DFW would be in serious legal hot water. Not just with their customers but with the Importer Roketa as well. dfwscooters.com/product_info.php?products_id=479&osCsid=73bc46a9de4c68c5229099af5c628843www.roketa.com/htm/scooters/mc-17-150.htmIt would indeed be wise to verify that the DFW scooter is a Roketa as you well advised Sir! |
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Post by Javarod on Apr 3, 2006 22:01:41 GMT -5
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Post by Admin on Apr 4, 2006 7:33:02 GMT -5
You really have to watch some of these internet dealers. Most of them will send whatever brand they can get their hands on. If you want a specific brand, you need to communicate that fully and get them to put it in writing (at least in an email) that they are sending that brand. As of this date, there are only two internet dealers that I would do business with. I'm sure some more are fine but most of them are not to be trusted.
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Post by scooterollie on Apr 4, 2006 13:41:05 GMT -5
For the "Roketa" 150cc Phantom clone I have, the FMVSS plate has the manufacturer designated on the bottom as "Taizhou Chuanl Motorcycle Co." I spoke with the folks at WWD a few times and got different answers as to what brand their bikes were and who manufactured them. This is the official Roketa website : www.roketa.com/. I don't know if their bikes are now being made by Chuanl. My dealer did originally buy from Roketa last year and his shipment of bikes were made by Chuanl then. As I said previously, he now deals directly with Chuanl. As has been stated many places, the problem is that some of these distributors buy from different sources and just place their own stickers on the bikes. You may not know from one month to the next who is actually making their bikes. I have read that while there are many "assemblers" in China, only a few actually make the parts they use and only a couple of places make body panels. Besides cloning, that is one reason why so many different assemblers/manufacturers have bikes that appear identical to each other but that appearance is only skin deep. I know some of the importers are trying real hard to establish quality control and set standards with their manufacturers. Others are in it only for the buck and buy where they get the best price at the time. My dealer said he did a lot of research last year to determine who was using the better components and had decent quality. He chose Chuanl to get a reasonable level of quality/components for the price he paid. From what I have seen and heard from others they may not be the best but they are far from the worst and their product seems to be OK. He is hoping they will back him up with supply, service and parts as well as quality. If not, he will select another manufacturer. ScooterOllie |
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Post by medman1952 on Apr 5, 2006 21:32:38 GMT -5
I found an online dealer that I had not been to before. Has anybody heard of or had dealings with Motortoyshop.com ? this place adverstises some good prices, just wondering if they have bitten anybody.
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